1st Aug 09
Melbourne’s Polyglot wins top award
Melbourne’s Polyglot has been awarded the Excellent Production Award at the 2009 Shanghai International Children’s Festival in China for Check Out! - a wickedly funny work of puppet theatre about the child consumer bonanza.
The award is an exciting conclusion to two weeks of shows in Shanghai and Fuzhou, performing to over 2,500 people. The Shanghai International Children’s Festival performances were at the prestigious Shanghai Grand Theatre, and were introduced by Maxine Morand MP, Victorian State Minister for Children.
Polyglot General Manager, Simon Abrahams said: “Polyglot is so excited to receive this award and had a very successful tour in China. We cemented our place as a truly international company and as cultural ambassadors for Victoria around the world.”
Polyglot was invited to be a part of the Festival following the Company’s appearance at the ASSITEJ World Children’s Theatre Congress in Adelaide in 2008.
The Company performed The Big Game at the Singapore Arts Festival in May this year, and next month will perform We Built This City at John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC, as part of Performing Arts For Everyone.
Polyglot is one of Australia’s major puppetry theatre companies, with a 30-year history of creating groundbreaking original theatre and fun interactive events for children and families. Polyglot knows children are more than the “audience of tomorrow”, and creates contemporary work for children as audiences of today, who are as capable of appreciating conceptual and emotional theatre as any adult.
Check Out! is directed by Sue Giles who has directed over 30 productions since1993 and written 21 produced plays by Terrapin Puppet Theatre, Back To Back Theatre, Melbourne Theatre Company, Arena Theatre, Mainstreet Theatre and of course Polyglot, where Sue has been Artistic Director since 2000.
